Garner's Modern American Usage

Bryan Garner

Author is an acclaimed writer, grammarian, lexicographer, teacher, and lawyer.

The first language usage guide to include the "Garner's Language-Change Index," which registers where each disputed usage in modern English falls on a five-stage continuum from nonacceptability.

Also the first language usage guide to feature a panel of critical readers: 120-plus commentators who have helped Garner reassess and update the text, so that every page has been improved.

Garner's Modern American Usage

Third Edition

Bryan Garner

Description

Since first appearing in 1998, Garner's Modern American Usage has established itself as the preeminent guide to the effective use of the English language. Brimming with witty, erudite essays on troublesome words and phrases, this book authoritatively shows how to avoid the countless pitfalls that await unwary writers and speakers whether the issues relate to grammar, punctuation, word choice, or pronunciation.

Now in the third edition, readers will find the "Garner's Language-Change Index," which registers where each disputed usage in modern English falls on a five-stage continuum from nonacceptability (to the language community as a whole) to acceptability, giving the book a consistent standard throughout. Garner's Modern American Usage, 3e is the
first usage guide ever to incorporate such a language-change index, and the judgments are based both on Garner's own original research in linguistic corpora and on his analysis of hundreds of earlier studies. Another first in this edition is the panel of critical readers: 120-plus commentators who have helped Garner reassess and update the text, so that every page has been improved.

Garner's Modern American Usage

Third Edition

Bryan Garner

Table of Contents

Preface to the Third EditionPreface to the Second EditionPreface to the First EditionAcknowledgmentsList of Essay EntriesList of AbbreviationsPronunciation GuideKey to Language-Change IndexEssay: Making Peace in the Language WarsEssay: The Ongoing Struggles of Garlic-HangersMODERN AMERICAN USAGEGlossary of Grammatical, Rhetorical, and Other Language-Related TermsA Timeline of Books on UsageSelect BibliographySelect Index of Writers Quoted or Mentioned

Garner's Modern American Usage

Third Edition

Bryan Garner

Author Information

Bryan Garner is the award-winning author or editor of more than 20 books. He is a prolific lecturer, having taught more than 2,500 writing workshops since the 1991 founding of his company, LawProse, Inc. His works include Garner on Language and Writing and Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges, co-written with Justice Antonin Scalia. Garner has served as editor-in-chief of Black's Law Dictionary since 1995, and he is the author of the grammar-and-usage chapter in the venerable Chicago Manual of Style.

Garner's Modern American Usage

Third Edition

Bryan Garner

Reviews and Awards

"Clearly one of the best works on the topic" --Booklist starred review

"Whether taking those first steps on the road to good writing--namely, the avoidance of bad writing--or tending to further details of clarity, style, and organization, the writer-editor, like any artisan, needs guidance from a master. Such guidance is just what Garner's Modern American Usage provides, and lots of it." --Five Towns Jewish Times

"Garner makes grammar fun, and readers will not only find elucidation but also moments of pure delight while browsing these pages. As always, the entries are not only filled with clear lessons about language usage, trends, and problems inherent in misuse, but they are also peppered with cleverly chosen examples of both usage and misusage. [Garner's] book is the best of its kind in that it simply reports the facts in an engaging way; language evolves and usage changes. An invaluable ready-reference tool." School Library Journal

"Garner's book is by far the best on contemporary usage. For language lovers or for those attempting to find out how words are being used today, Garner's Modern American Usage is an indispensable tool." --Technical Communication